BY BRYCE DAVIS BOHON & TRINITY MUNSON

Physics and Community Engagement: Promoting Social Justice with Science

Bryce Davis Bohon by

Trinity Munson

with Dr. Dannielle Joy Davis Deborah Bush-Munson Evelyn Washington

With financial support from a Saint Louis University 1818 Community Engagement Grant, the Circle of Excellence Network Science Team of Missouri and physics teacher Mrs. Evelyn Washington of Tanzania partnered to create a culturally relevant science opportunity for middle-school St. Louis youth. The Science Team, founded by Bryce Davis Bohon, was able to delve into various applications of physics through participation in Washington’s “Physics of the Pharaohs” course. The underrepresented young team was encouraged to consider future STEM careers in the field and were also awarded memberships to the National Association of Black Physicists. Hence, our intended goal of offering culturally relevant science education was met.

Impact Summary

Total Number of People Impacted: 7 students Population: African American and multiracial Age Range: 11–13 years Grade Levels: 6th–8th Gender: 3 girls and 4 boys

Personal Growth and Development

As a leader of the program, Dr. Davis’s connections with participants and their families strengthened. The grant allowed her to pursue and expand her work despite the COVID-19 pandemic. In past work, Davis has observed the importance of minority representation and intersectionality within curriculum and while learning STEM subjects (Davis et al., 2015), which is a missing component in most public and private schools that underrepresented children attend (Le & Matias, 2019; Page et al., 2018; Parsons et al., 2008; Wright et al., 2016).

The most challenging aspect of the collaboration involved encouraging students to complete the physics homework, as for many of the youth, this was an additional extracurricular course. The most rewarding aspect of this work was the joy students expressed when receiving their physics packages in the mail (which included the textbook, National Association of Black Physicists apparel, and a science workbook) and their excitement about experiments Mrs. Washington conducted with them during Zoom physics sessions.

Sustainability and Future Goals

The Science Team looks forward to continuing to use “The Star of Deep Beginnings” book by Dr. Charles Finch as a text and to meet as a team, both virtually and face to face when feasible. We continue to look for additional funding sources to sustain our work. Zoom served as a good substitute for in-person sessions within the program this past year due to the need to socially distance during the pandemic. We hoped to continue classes with Washington this semester yet were not able to do so due to lack of funding. Nevertheless, we are excited to resume meeting both virtually and face to face to prepare for science competitions and learn from local science experts.

Testimonials Teacher and International Collaborator

When students are connected to their historical role in any subject, they perform better. This course will make them better physicists. Physics is about understanding how the world works and its natural extension, engineering, is about solving problems. Our communities are overwhelmed with problems. Good physicists [or] engineers can solve them.

Students

– Mrs. Evelyn Washington, Tanzania

I really enjoyed learning about how ancient Egyptians had eyeglasses. As a person who wears glasses, it made it even more interesting!

– Bryce, Science Team member We learned about the blind spot of the eye [and] refraction, and viewed a diagram of the eye. We [also] learned about nearsightedness and farsightedness. I liked the quizzes and taking class from Mrs. Evelyn. – Trinity, Science Team member, speaking of physics class

Parent

Allowing my child to participate on the Science Team builds critical thinking [and] creativity, enhances vocabulary skills and team building skills. Exposure to science in primary and secondary educational settings prepares children for the rigor of science at postsecondary levels (Page et al., 2018). [My child] was definitely excited. Thank you for always being so kind and considerate. Thank you for the inclusion and all that you do. – Deborah, Science Team member’s mother

Conclusion

The Circle of Excellence Network Science Team engaged in exploring scientific information related to “Physics of the Pharaohs,” as Ancient Egyptian pharaohs were scientists of color. According to Le and Matias (2019), pedagogical techniques utilizing inclusive language and assigning homework centering scientists of color serve as interventions that aid in narrowing the achievement gap for underrepresented students. Careers in STEM require deep criticalthinking skills. Hence, building these skills in middle-school settings is essential (Le & Matias, 2019; Page et al., 2018; Parsons et al., 2008; Wright et al., 2016). Moreover, underrepresented students need role models that validate their presence in STEM fields. This renders minority representation imperative for students studying these subjects (Le & Matias, 2019). A future generation of underrepresented doctors, dentists, engineers, and scientists is needed to prepare for our new global economy (Liou-Mark & Ghosh-Dastidar, 2018). This Science Team allows students to learn, engage, enhance imperative critical-thinking skills, and better prepare for successful STEM careers.

References

Davis, D. J., Brunn, R., & Olive, J. (Eds.). (2015). Intersectionality in education research. Stylus Publishing. Le, P. T., & Matias, C. E. (2019). Towards a truer multicultural science education: How whiteness impacts science education. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 14(1), 15–31. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11422-01709854-9

Liou-Mark, J., & Ghosh-Dastidar, U. (2018). The peer-led team learning leadership program for first year minority science, technology, engineering, and mathematics students. Journal of Peer Learning, 11(5), 65–75. Page, R. B., Espinosa, J., Mares, C. A., Pilar, J. D., & Shelton, G. R. (2018). The curvy road to student success in underserved populations. Journal of College Science Teaching, 47(5), 6–7. Parsons, E. C., Foster, S., Gomillion, C. T., & Simpson, J. S. (2008). Diversity knowledge in science teacher education—translating concept to instruction: An example specific to African Americans. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 19(1), 69–83. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10972-007-9082-3 Wright, B. L., Counsell, S. L., Goings, R. B., Freeman, H., & Peat, F. (2016). Creating access and opportunity: Preparing African-American male students for STEM trajectories preK–12. Journal for Multicultural Education, 10(3), 384–404. https://doi.org/10.1108/jme-01-2016-0003